King Louis XIV An Absolute Monarchy

An Absolute Monarchy is when the people or person in power have total control of the people and the country, and has unrestricted political power. The question at hand now is, was the government of King Louis XIV an absolute monarchy? First this essay will answer the question that King Louis was an absolute monarch. Next the the essay will then talk about the arguments that can be made to contradict the idea that he was an absolute monarch. Finally, this essay will talk about how the answer to the question has better evidence proving that the argument that King Louis was an absolute monarch is stronger than the argument that he was not. In my opinion the answer to the question, “was the government of King Louis XIV an absolute monarchy?”,

No one disobeyed him and they all moved into the palace. Everyday these nobles would dress him each by one article of clothing and it was considered a privilege to do so. Also the nobles would gather around him and watch him eat. Again these people would be considered privileged if he talked to one of them. This just shows how he had the people submitting to his will because of the people dressing him and watching him eat, as well as being able to make changes as he wishes shown by his ability to move the government to his palace. Another piece of evidence that proves that King Louis was an absolute monarch is Louis XIV: The Metier du Roi. “To be well informed on an infinite number of matters about which we are supposed to know nothing.”(J. Longnon 48-57) This is a quote that relates to King Louis being an absolute monarch because it is saying that it is important to know about everything that is going on with the people he rules and the people that he does not. An example of this would be him having all his nobles move into his palace. He did this so that he could keep a closer eye on them and see what they are up to, as well as the nobles that would spy on each other to gossip about which would eventually get to the king. The final example proving that King Louis XIV was an absolute monarch is Duc de Saint-Simon: Memoires: The Aristocracy Undermined in France. “Frequent fetes… pleasing him.” (Ranum, Ranum pg 81, 83,

“There was nothing he liked so much as flattery.” (De Rouvroy) This quote could discredit the fact that his nobles would submit to his power out of fear. Because he loved flattery the nobles might have only surrendered to him because they knew that his weakness was flattery. They might have only done things for him such as dressing him and accompanying him while he is eating so that they could be on better terms with him and they might get some benefit for doing these things for him, not because they were afraid of him. Frederick William, The Great Elector : A Secret Letter: Monarchical Authority in Prussia, is another source that has ideas that can counter the fact that King Louis was absolute. The quotation “Take advantage of the advice of the clergy and nobility as much as you can; listen to them and be gracious to them all, as befits one of your position,” (Snyder pg 94-95) talks about how King Louis should listen to the advice that the nobles and clergy give to him. The reason this can make him non absolute is because he could have been making decisions based on what other people telling him. He is not making his own decisions on what he thinks is correct, he is listening to the opinion of other unlike an absolute monarch. Finally Duc de Saint-Simon: Memoires: The Aristocracy Undermined in France, can also go against the idea that King Louis was not absolute. A quote from this text, “These secret communications…